Margaret Dorfman for the Uncommon Collection

Fresh-Picked Beauties

These delicate flower earrings fresh enough to be just-picked from the garden, but you might not guess that it's the vegetable garden. The creation of artist Margaret Dorfman, these flowers have petals and leaves crafted from thinly sliced vegetables. The veggies are picked for their rich color, and then cured, pressed, aged and dried into thin sheets. The parchment-like sheet is then shaped into their delicate flower forms and mounted on gold filled earring hooks. Each blossom is finished with a semi-precious stone as the tip of its stamen. Handmade in California.

Margaret Dorfman for the Uncommon Collection

location

California

Margaret's work is made by hand from over 40 different varieties of fresh fruits and vegetables that are cured, dried, pressed and aged in a 10-14 day process. The translucent parchments that result capture and preserve the jewel-like colors and intricate structures that are characteristic of each fruit or vegetable. She calls this Vegetable Parchment, because the texture and translucency calls to mind the vellum parchments of medieval Europe.

Margaret realized at an early age that the best materials like acorns, bark, moss and feathers weren't found in stores. She still believes that the best materials are found in unexpected places, such as Chinatown for lotus root and bok choy, small Mexican mercados for chili peppers and papaya, Japanese markets and Korean groceries for green necked daikon. Though she now uses a produce supplier, she still visits these places with an eye out for the novel.

Everything is cut by hand with an old-fashioned mandolin slicer and a wickedly sharp assortment of knives. Her studio follows sustainable practices, using reclaimed water and recyclable packaging, and no toxic products are used. Leftovers are composted, recycled or donated to the local zoo.

Margaret earned degrees in Linguistics and Anthropology from U.C. Davis. She then went on to gain fluency in American Sign Language, and worked for many years as a sign language interpreter. For the last 13 years she has done this work full-time at her studio in Northern California, where she lives with her husband and son.

"It is deeply satisfying to work with these fruit and vegetables," says Margaret. "There seems to be alchemy involved as they transform from the familiar and commonplace and become objects of unexpected beauty. But I know it is not magic—and I am not really creating something new. I am only uncovering what was always there to see."

3" long with stem x 1/2" wide, each set varies slightly due to handmade nature

Care

Store out of direct sunlight.

Item ID

22100

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Most of our items are in stock and will ship quickly. Orders for in-stock items placed before 5pm ET (Economy and Standard shipping) or 2pm ET (Preferred, Expedited, and Express shipping) Monday through Friday, excluding Federal holidays, will ship:

Economy shipping:

within 8 days, arriving no later than the 9th business day after the order was placed.

Standard shipping:

within 4 days, arriving 5 business days after the order was placed.

Preferred shipping:

within 2 days, arriving 3 business days after the order was placed.

Expedited shipping:

within 1 day, arriving 2 business days after the order was placed.

Express shipping:

will ship the same day and arrive 1 business day later.

Due to the handmade and natural elements of these items, colors may vary slightly from photo.

I purchased the purple potato earrings and my expectations were exceeded! Before ordering I was already amazed at the creativity and unique design, but upon receiving them I was even more amazed! My mother loved them as a Christmas present and said she would be looking up the other parchment blossom earrings to purchase later on. Highly recommend!

Merchant response:We're sorry that you're not totally happy with these earrings. We want you to love everything you buy from us. For a return or exchange, contact our customer service team by calling 888.365.0056, emailing help@uncommongoods.com, or clicking the "live chat" link at the bottom of every page on our site, under “Support.” Thanks for shopping with UncommonGoods!

I bought these first for my sister's birthday and she loved them so much that I bought them again as a Christmas gift. These earrings are so unique and so pretty that both recipients have told me they receive compliments from people all the time. They are very delicate though so storing them may be an issue if u are not careful. I'm ordering a pair for myself.

It's a great conversation piece. I love telling people how the earrings are crafted, and then they are compelled to ask to inspect the earrings. They are a remarkable addition to my jewelry collection.

I purchased these earrings for my mother for Christmas. Her favorite flower is a calla lily, and the white and green version look like calla lilies, so I decided to get them for her. She loved them! When she opened them she exclaimed and couldn't stop telling me how beautiful they were. Her only concern was that they looked too delicate to actually wear.

Service and delivery comments:

Delivery was prompt and the earrings arrived in perfect condition. My only complaint was that they were delivered in a box much larger than necessary.

These were a wonderful surprise on Christmas morning! Such a unique product. The only thing I didn't like, and maybe it's just because I'm short, was that they are a bit too long. And whenever they hit my shoulder, they popped out of my ear a bit. Otherwise, a wonderful product!